Bert Berlin of South Richmond says that he is most passionate about education. His two grand-daughters are enrolled in Richmond Public Schools.

“To me the most effective anti-poverty agency is Richmond Public schools,” Berlin said. “If kids don’t get an adequate education, then they’re never going to be able to manage to get out of poverty.”

Berlin has set out to seek more funding for Richmond Public Schools by starting an online petition because he says there is room for improvement in the education system in the city.

“Unfortunately, in the City of Richmond,” Berlin said, “depending on the neighborhood you are in, you either get a better or lesser education.”

In the past, Richmond schools have received far less money compared to the surrounding counties:

Henrico County: 54%

Chesterfield County: 38%

City of Richmond: 26.1%

Berlin’s goal is to get 500 signatures while lobbying for better resources in the classroom and increased teacher pay.

The Mayor proposed $154 million for RPS last year with a slight increase to $155 million this year.

City Council’s Finance committee Chair Kathy Graziano says the city needs to build more efficient schools and not spend so much on administrative costs.

“Do we continue to put band-aids on old schools or do we begin to develop a plan of consolidation where schools are – like they are in the counties – bigger,” said Kathy Graziano, 4th district Richmond City Council member.

A public hearing on the city budget will be held at City Hall on April 14th at 6 p.m. City council will vote on the budget on May 31.

1 Comment

Glen Allen

Kathy (Graziano) – Maintenance on City schools (and probably all City buildings) has been deferred for so long, band aids will not cut it. Many, if not all buildings need a complete refurbishment. Yes, it would be great to plan for new replacement schools, but take the politics out of it. The two new elementary schools were nowhere near ready when you moved children into them, in fact according to the City (Building Permit) website, it took well over a year to get the Certificate of Occupancy, and the HVAC systems still do not work anywhere near properly, as attested by WTVR in several earlier reports.